Ever Mine
by domina tempore
Summary: Ronon is dead, and it is killing her... A lot of angst, hurt/comfort, and friendship: some more likely than others.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note: I wrote this a while ago, and I really enjoyed it. I was in a very angsty mood, and this is what came out of it :) It can also be found on Atlantica and Wraithbait._

_Please review and tell me what you think; your reviews keep me are alive; they are as essential to me as breathing :) I go crazy waiting for the next time I can go on to check my reviews._

**Chapter One**

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Teyla fell brokenly to her knees, weeping uncontrollably. He was dead, Ronon was dead. He'd left because of her and now she'd lost him forever. Nothing anyone could say would comfort her; and nothing would ease her pain. He was gone; and though she heard it and knew it was true, she could never accept it. All of this was her fault. Now she had lost the only person in her life on Atlantis who she had trusted with all her heart; her most desperate secrets. She couldn't talk to anyone this time; and she was certain she would never laugh again.

------------

He didn't know how long he'd laid, his body aching and torn. He didn't even know how long he'd been conscious; and now that he was he had no idea where he was. He didn't even remember his own name.

Slowly, he lifted his aching body from the ground. He had to get to thie stargate. Stargate. That was something he knew. It took you to different places; other worlds. He would go to another world and find Teyla. _Teyla_. Who was she; and why did he need her? He had many questions and no answers; but he knew with absolute certainty that he needed to find Teyla. Teyla. _Teyla_...

------------------

It had been nearly a month since Ronon's death. By then, his team had recovered to the point that they had resumed their off-world duty. But they had refused to choose someone to fill Ronon's spot on the team. Sheppard and McKay seemed to be dealing with it better then Teyla; she was practically consumed by her grief and her guilt; and they were worried about her.

One day, Sheppard and Elizabeth and McKay were sitting with her at lunch, trying to draw her out; and Sheppard noticed, not for the first time, how pale and thin she looked. Not her normal, healthy figure; she was too thin; like she was sick. He looked at her plate and saw that she'd barely touched what little she'd taken.

"Maybe you should talk to Dr. Heightmeyer," he suggested for about the hundredth time since Ronon had... since they'd lost him.

"What can she tell me that I do not already understand?" she challenged bitterly. No one pressed her. There were a few moments of uncomfortable silence; Elizabeth finally broke it.

"I have a new mission for the three of you, later. Are you up to it?" They nodded, and Teyla stood up.

"I have to go," she said, and fled the mess hall. McKay sighed with something like relief, and Sheppard frowned at him. McKay rolled his eyes.

"What, like it isn't awkward for you to be with her now, too?"

"She's been through a lot lately," Elizabeth defended her friend when John remained silent.

"Yeah, I know, but..." he shrugged helplessly, unable to put his feelings into words.

"She's not herself anymore," McKay supplied. "She used to smile and laugh; it used to make people happy just to be around her. But she hasn't smiled in weeks; and it's hard to be around her now." he'd voiced what all of them had been feeling but reluctant to admit; she just wasn't their Teyla anymore.

"I want the old Teyla back," Sheppard confessed. Elizabeth nodded.

"Me too."

-----------------

He'd hopped planets for nearly a month now, searching for Teyla. After he'd left that lonely planet where he'd been hurt, he'd found himself in a strange, crowded place where people laughed at him or ran from him; he hadn't stayed there long.

When he dialed out he chose symbols at random, having no idea where to go. He'd found several other worlds, but left them all within a day. Finally he found a village where no one was afraid of him; and a kind old woman called Bena took him in. She was a healer; and she treated his many wounds and gave him new clothes to replace the torn, filthy ones he had. They were strange but comfortable. He stayed with her for several days.

"Where are you from?" she'd asked him, the second day he stayed with her.

"Stargate," he'd answered. He'd come through the stargate; she knew that.

"From what world?"

"Lots," he'd mumbled. He didn't know their names; how could anyone know the names of so many different worlds?

"Who are you looking for?" his eyes grew bright.

"Teyla," he said immediately. That he knew.

"Why are you looking for her?"

"Dunno. But I've gotta find her." Bena nodded but didn't reply, seeming thoughtful.

"Bena," he began suddenly. She was the only person who had taken care of him; maybe she would know what he was almost afraid to ask. "Who am I?"

"Child, I do not know. That is something that only you can answer," he sighed sadly.

"I don't even have a name," he lamented softly. Bena's eyes grew sympathetic.

"Do you think a name makes you who or what you are?"

"It helps," he'd said defensively.

"If that is all that worries you, I will give you a name. Would you like that?" he nodded. She'd always just called him "child" or "little one" (even though he was more than a foot taller then her). He wanted a real name.

Bena thought for a moment, of her son who she had lost so long ago. This man was so like him...

"Your name is Ro," she said finally.

"Ro," he repeated in a hushed voice, rolling the word around on his tongue like he was tasting it. Then he smiled

"I like it," he said slowly.

Bena watched him smiling, as he left to take a walk. He'd probably introduce himself to everyone he met along the way. It was so strange; he was so tall and strong and was so intimidating to look at; but he was really sweet and gentle, with a childlike innocence that his lack of memory offered him. She hoped he would stay.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Teyla continued to grieve, mourning the loss of her closest friend and the events that hadled up to his death. She blamed herself, and no amount of trying could talk her out of it. Her friends tried to talk to her and ease her guilt, but she refued to be pitied. She didn't want their sympathy; only to change what had happened. And they couldn't do that. As a result she withdrew more and more from them; unwilling to let them try to heal her grief yet equally unable to share it. Things got to the point where what McKay had said had come true; and it was hard to be with her; even to see her. She was a completely different person.

"Even on missions she doesn't talk," Sheppard admitted to Elizabeth. "When we fight she's better then ever, but it's stiff, mechanical. Almost like she's programmed to do things but isn't aware of them."

"And on the city she's hiding," Elizabeth couldn't understand her. Did she realy feel that guilty?

"Did you know she still runs the city?" McKay asked. That surprised them a little.

"Really?"

"Yeah. She runs the same path she and Ronon used to do together."

"Hiding from the truth." They wished that they knew how to help her; but no one had any idea what to do. They wished Teyla would talk to them; they'd all lost people; even if they couldn't fully empathize with her situation, they thought they could understand her. But instead she would run, away from them, away from all the populated parts of the city; until there was no one to see her pain. But it was by doing this that she found unexpected comfort from the most unlikely source of all; Sergeant Bates.

Their meeting was by accident; he bumped into her while she was running. She frown a bit, Bates being the absolute last person that she wanted to see at the moment. But he didn't act like his usual, suspicious self, which made her feel the tiniest bit better.

"I'm sorry about Ronon," he said, surprising her more then a little.

"What---?"

"I know it must be hard to lose him; I know how close you two were. If there's anything I can do..." she looked away, blinking back tears. Not since that fisrt day that Ronon had been dead had she cried; and she wasn't about to start now. It never occured to her to queston his sincerity; when Bates said something, he meant it.

"You don't even want me here---" she began.

"But no one deserves to deal with this kind of thing alone." For the first time in a month, a smile attempted to shape her lips.

"Did you know him?" she asked softly, sounding unsure. Bates shook his head.

"Not very well; we didn't agree on much. But the way everyone's been talking I wish I'd tried."

"Tell me what you do remember," she begged, deciding that if it was necessary to talk about him then it might as well be something good instead of about his death. And this was the one moment where Bates was treating her like a normal person, and who was she to look this gift horse in the mouth?

Bates decided to take a break from his rounds of the city that really weren't necessary; this might be the one conversation he had with Teyla that didn't involve him getting hit.

"He was the strongest guy we'd ever seen," he said. "But not wild like he looked, except when it concerned your team."

"He did not look wild." Her argument seemed more out of habit then true anger.

"He did if anyone said anything about any of you that he didn't like. But if he was just talking about you he would get really soft. I only saw it a couple of times, but..."

They sat there in the middle of the empty hall that Teyla ran for what seemed like a long time, though it may not have been. Bates was softer then Teyla had ever seen him before; her let her talk herself out, listening patiently, holding her close when her tears threatened, having totally uncharacteristic compassion for this woman who hurt so much she could hardly live. And when she'd laugh over some silly thing that she remembered, he couldn't help but laugh with her. He wondered if she knew why he was being this way; but she couldn't possibly know about his past; the love he'd lost to cancer; the years it had taken to get over her death. Bur even he didn't realize how huge those moments in the hall really were for her; the fact that she'd smiled. It was the first sigh that she'd given that she was coming to terms with what had happened. And as hard as it was to share with Bates, she was finally starting to heal.

---------------

Ro had left Bena's world after about a week; but he couldn't find Teyla, or any place he felt he belonged; so after a couple of weeks of planet-hopping he returned.

"Ro, I'm so glad you're back!" she said when she saw him at her door. "It's good to see you again." She wrapped him in her arms and drew him in; and fixed him a meal as he told her what happened. He talked different now; more aware of things, more equolent.

"I didn't find Teyla," he said as he gratefully accepted the food. "And I didn't find out about my world."

"I'm sorry you didn't find anything," Bena said.

"That's why I came back so soon; I'm tired of running."

"Ro, you can stay here as long as you like." Bena had been doing some searching of her own, spreading word among the traders and asking about a man of his description. But so far she too had found nothing.

"Why did you help me?" he asked thoughtfully. Bena shrugged.

"I would never have let anyone suffer like you would have."

"Was I really that bad?"

"When you came her; but you're fine now. You have a name, a friend, and a home, if you wish." he nodded.

"Thank you." he said softly. "For everything that you've done for me." She nodded, but didn't continue the conversation; she could see how tired he was. She fixed a place for him to sleep; and withing a few moments he had driefted into dreams. Bena was certain that he was dreaming of Teyla... whoever she was.

Though Bena wondered about this strange guest she had taken in, she began to grow attached to the man she called Ro; and soon came to think of him as sort of an adopted son. She was glad that he had chosen to stay; she had lost all her family long ago.

The peole of her village gradually began to accept Ro as one of their own. Bena was one of the most respected elders of their people; and therefore if she said that the man was good, she went unquestioned. And he did seem to be very good; he helped her wherever he could. In fact, whatever work needed to be done anywhere, he was willing and eager to do it; to make a place for himself among these people. He continued to go offworld every so often to look for Teyla; but as time when on the search became less urgent, his desire to find her dimmed by his comfort on Bena's world. She had become his family.

Bena, too continued to ask about a man who fit Ro's description; but still she had no luck. And as much as she wanted him to have his life back--- all that he'd had before he'd stumbled into her village through the gate, hurt and alone--- she was reluctant to let him go back. If his friends had left him like that, hurt and alone and confused with no memory of anything but a name, then maybe it was best that he was here now. He would be better off on her world.

As he grew accustomed to his new life, Ro found himself wondering less and less about his past. But he found himself falling almost unconsciously into habits that he had no recolection of; like early morning runs. But he liked to run, so it didn't bother him unduely.

One day, as he was returning from a run, the wraith came. The village was so small that they came in on foot; and the people acted as was natural and ran. But not Ro; seeing the wraith had awoken something inside of him that he didn't understand and wasn't quite sure he liked. But it felt right.

Bena saw him standing directly in the path of the wraith, between them and the terrified villagers.

"Ro!" she screamed his name, begging him to run before she lost him. But he didn't move.

Suddenly, without warning, he launched into a flurry of motion, attacking the wraith before they knew what hit them. One after another, they fell at his hands. The villagers watched in awe as he defeated each and every one of them. They were so amazed that their fear left them; and when the last wraith fell they flocked around him. Bena pushed through the crowd of people until she reached him and wrapped him in a hug that he couldn't escape.

"How did you do that?" someone asked. Ro shrugged helplessly.

"I dunno. Instinct, I guess."

"It appears that there is more to my son that meets the eye." No one noticed that she called him her son, so she continued.

"Ro is a true warrior, stronger then any who have come before him."

The people celebrated his victory over the wraith for many days. Word spread fast among the traders that there was a new warrior showing himself, who could defeat wraith with his bare hands. As the stories passed the descriptions became more wild; yet people believed them, unreal as they were. But there were 2 things in every story that remained constant; his wild hair, and the name Fire-eyes.

The rumors spread further.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Sheppard and McKay had been arguing; and had paused only a second to step through the gate; their spat resumed immediately on the other side.

"I'm just sayin', it sounds like him. It could be another Satedan."

"None of them survived, remember?" McKay snapped. "It's a fake, the people found some tall guy who wanted to be a hero and made up a story about how he killed some wraith to save his village."

"A tall guy with dreads like a mane?" Sheppard cocked an eyebrow. "Sure, because those guys are just running around all over the Pegasus galaxy."

"Do you think its him?" McKay asked, sounding unconvinced.

"I don't know, maybe something happened and he was brought back to life. Stranger things go on around here."

"Look, just because you couldn't bring the body back doesn't mean---" he was interrupted by Elizabeth's arrival.

"Welcome back," she greeted them. "How did things go?" Sheppard smiled.

"Our mission went fine; but that's not what was interesting."

"Well lets hear it." They started to walk towards her office; but Teyla went the other way. They'd almost forgotten she was there, she took so little interst in their argument. She had been better lately; but she'd withdrawn so far she was having trouble sliding back into her old life again.

Sheppard notcied her leaving.

"You comin'?" he asked. She shook her head.

"I have something that I need to do" she answered. He worried briefly if she was alright, but then dismissed the fear. She was getting better now; she talked more, hid less; and her eyes no longer carried that listless, haunted look that her friends had never gotten used to.

"So what's to interesting?" Elizabeth asked, bringing him back to the converstion.

"Oh, you're not going to believe the rumors flying around---"

"He thinks he found another Satedan." McKay interrupted. "But that's impossible, they're all dead."

"Didn't Teyla say she met another one once?"

"Yeah, and she said he looked nothing like Ronon."

"You don't believe that Ronon could have suvived that attack you were in?" McKay shook his head.

"You wouldn't either if you saw what they did to him." Sheppard's fingers curled into a frustrated fist.

"I'm just saying, there's no one like Ronon. I wouldn't put it past him to make it out alive."

"Oh, the odds against it are---"

"Slim, but not unthinkable," Elizabeth cut in. "I'll tell our people to keep an ear open for it; but until you're sure I'm not authorizing a major search." As she said that, she realized how often Sheppard got that speech from her. And his answer, by now, was equally predictable.

"Fair enough." But she knew that he was going to do everything he could to get that proof.

"Like you're ever going to find it..." McKay trailed off at John's glare.

"I'm gonna go check on Teyla," he said after a minute of stony silence. Elizabeth shook her head as she watched him go.

Teyla had left the gateroom and headed straight for her quarters; but she didn't make it that far. She had to pass Ronon's room, and she felt drawn to it. She went in.

Everything was just as she remembered it from that day; his last day.

_"Ronon!"_ she heard her voice call his name._ "Ronon! Answer me!"_ she'd grabbed his arm and he'd turned to face her, shaking her hand off.

"_There's nothing to talk about."_

_"You almost killed a man, Ronon! I want to know why."_

_"No! It's my score, my problem! Stay out of my life if you don't want to get hurt."_ She hated what she'd said next; even as she'd spoken the words, she'd hated them.

_"What right do you have to hide from me?"_ she'd asked, taking a step forward and glaring at him through narrowed eyes._ "Before you came here you were an outcast, running from everyone and everything. We gave you your life back; we gave you a home. And what makes you think we could not take it back just as quickly?"_ He'd stared at her for a moment, his eyes betraying feelings of pain and betrayal. And then he'd left. Just like that, no answer, no explanations. No goodbye. He'd gone off with Sheppard and McKay and got himself killed. And it was killing her.

She picked up his coat from the floor where he'd thrown it in anger on the day that they'd lost him. She held it close to herself, closing her eyes and breathing in deeply the lingering scent of him, that she could almost mistake for his presence if she let herself. But that brought on a whole new wave of pain and grief.

She sat on his bed, still holding the coat, and looked around. This was all that was left of him. And for the first time in the months that he had been gone, she was finally forced to come to terms with the fact that not only was Ronon gone; but he was not coming back.

She didn't know how long she sat there. She saw but didn't really notice the shadows to signify the passage of time. Eventually, Sheppard found her.

"You okay?" he asked gently, sitting down next to her.

"How did you know that I was here?" she asked softly.

"Well, usually if I want to find you you're in your room or running; but since you weren't in either place, and considering what happened today, I figured that this place was a good bet." he looked around. "Gosh, I miss him." they were both quiet for a minute. Sheppard was the one to break the silence.

"So are you okay?" she shrugged.

"I was just thinking." _'About him'_ was the part she didn't add.

"Come on, Teyla. Please talk to me. You talked to Bates." she looked up sharply. "What? The lion and the lamb have a pleasant converation and you think that I don't hear about it? If it makes you feel better, all I know is that you talked about Ronon; no details." she relaxed and turned away again.

"Teyla, what happened? Things were getting better, why did you change again?" the words came hard for her; she hadn't been opened with her friends in so long that she could hardly speak.

"Today, the stories... I don't want them to be true; not that way."

"What? Up till today all you wanted was for him to come back!"

"I do! But not like this. It means that he chose to leave us." Finally, John understood her again.

"Where if he was hurt or captured, he wouldn't have been able to get back, and it wouldn't feel like he abandoned us." There was a few moments of silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Suddenly, Teyla looked up at him again.

"Do you believe that he is still alive?" she asked hesitantly, her voice hushed. Sheppard shrugged.

"Until today, the answer would have been no. But now I'm not so sure. I never was able to bring back his body; the wraith chased us off. I thought that they took it. But now..." there seemed nothing more to say. He got up to go.

"John," without waiting for an answer, she pulled him back to sit next to her, and started to cry. He wrapped his arms around her, letting her cry and wishing that there was something more that he could do to help her.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

About a week after the rumors started, one of the Athosians came to Atlantis with some very interesting news. She'd been away trading, and she had picked up an exciting little tidbit. She had seen Ronon. Teyla was somewhere between fear and relief when she heard.

"Don't lie to me, Suri," she cautioned the girl.

"I would never lie about this; I saw him!"

"Where did you see him?" Elizabeth asked. Suri turned to her with wide eyes.

"On Na'talan. But he doesn't call himself Ronon anymore."

"Was he alright?" Teyla asked. Suri turned to her.

"He seemed okay," she said thoughtfully. Sheppard saw in her eyes that she was on the verge of refusing to go, of deciding that if he was happy then she should leave him alone.

"Oh no," he took her arm. "You're not backing out of this one; we're bringing him back. Suri, what's the address?"

"You want him just as much as we do," McKay said as Suri recited the symbols to the address. They weren't going to let Teyla change her mind.

They thanked Suri for the address, and immediately dialed out to the planet that the Athosian girl had specified. On that planet, there was apparently some kind of festival going on. Traders had set up tables in sort of a great, open-air market. Entertainers like jugglers and sword-swallowers and acrobats mingled in the crowds, showing off their skills and making children laugh.

They didn't ask for Ronon. They wove through the colorful crowds looking for a man a head taller then everyone else with his mane of trademark dreadlocks that identified him on any world. But it was in a quiet place, not a crowd, that they found him. He was just disappeariing into a small house, and McKay called his name; but he ignored them. Sheppard began to get the sinking feeling that Teyla was right; he didn't want to come back home. But he wasn't about to be pesemistic now.

"Maybe that wasn't him," he suggested, trying to act like he believed it. McKay didn't.

"Like there's more then one guy that looks like that on _any_ planet."

"That's not what you said when we heard the first rumor," Sheppard muttered.

"It was him," Teyla whispered. Her eyes had grown soft, and her face was filled with a mix of a thousand emotions that she couldn't choose between.

An old woman came out of the house that Ronon had just entered, and noticed them.

"Is there something I can help you with?" she asked. Sheppard nodded.

"Yeah, the guy who just went into your house; tall, wild hair, can kick some serious butt? He's our friend Ronon; we thought that he died a couple of months ago, and we'd really like to talk to him."

"If this is another lie to take our protector away from us, you are wasting your time." Too many people had come with such stories already; and the name that they had said was too close to the one that she had chosen for him; they had to be lying.

"Just give us a minute to talk to him," McKay persisted. "You'll see."

"I'll thank you to leave now," there was an edge to the woman's voice now, a protective tone that they'd never imagined anyone but them using about Ronon.

"Please---" Teyla began, but Sheppard took her arm gently.

"Teyla, let's go," the woman looked up sharply.

"What did you call her?" McKay frowned.

"Wat do you care?" he asked. "I thought that you wanted us to go."

"McKay!" Sheppard snapped.

"Sorry!"

"What is your name?" the woman asked again.

"Teyla," she said slowly. "Teyla Emmagan." the woman sighed. She hadn't told anyone why she was looking for Teyla.

"Come with me," she said. She glanced at McKay and Sheppard. "Just you." But just then, Ronon came out. The woman saw Teyla's eyes widen in recongition, and she seemed on the verge of tears.

"Bena, what's going on?" he asked, giving the strangers a suspicious glance. "Are they bothering you?" She shook her head.

"Ro, this is Teyla. The one you were looking for." He cocked his head, and looked carefully at her. So this was the girl he'd been looking for; she was very beautiful. Teyla stepped forward.

"Ronon?" she whispered. Her voice was soft and high and musical, and he liked it.

"You're the one I was looking for?" he asked her,

"Ronon, it's me," she sounded a bit confused. "Why are you---"

"What did you call me?"

"It's your name, buddy; whats the matter with you? You're not mad because we didn't come sooner, are you? Because you coulda come home." He looked at Sheppard, but John saw right away that his words did not have the effect he had hoped for.

Ronon turned back to Teyla.

"Why was I looking for you?" he asked.

"Ronon, you live in my world; you're my best friend. Come back with me." he still seemed confused, and looked between her and Bena.

"Why did I need you?" he asked again.

"To bring you home," Teyla answered. But when she looked into his eyes, the Ronon that she knew didn't look back. "Ronon, please! I'm sorry for what I said to you that day, but enough games! Please come back." he was totally unconvinced.

"Tell me why you're here," he demanded. Teyla's eyes grew desperate.

"I'm here to bring you home; my home is your home, always, no matter what you do or who you are. I will never send you away. Ronon, please---"

"Stop calling me that! Whatever I was before, I don't want to go back. This is my life now; I'm sorry." Teyla nodded, and for a moment Bena and the others thought she was going to cry. But reluctant to break the spell they remained silent and unmoving, waiting. When Teyla looked up she had wiped every trace of emotion from her face, though it still raged like the sea behind her eyes.

"Very well," she answered. Bena could see her mouth shaking, and wondered if maybe her emotions weren't as under control as she'd thought. "If that is your decision, then so be it." She sighed. "I hope you are happy with the life that you have chosen." She turned and stalked away. Sheppard glared at Ronon.

"Oh, great job, buddy." he and McKay followed Teyla, and Ronon went back inside.

Bena watched them follow Teyla, and sighed. It was obvious that the girl cared for Ro---Ronon, now--- a great deal. She knew that the decision that she needed to make was one of the hardest that she had ever been presented with. But she knew what was right.

Dreading what she needed to do, she turned and followed Ro back inside.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Ronon turned around as Bena came in.

"I wonder why I wanted to find her," he mused thoughtfully. But he was glad they were leaving. Bena took a deep breath and placed her hands on his shoulders. He looked down at her, confused.

"Ro, you have to go with them."

"I don't want to -"

"You need to."

"No! I want to stay here, with you; I like who I am."

"_But this is not who you are, Ro_! I have loved you like a son and more; but your place is with them. You are Ronon."

"Bena, after all I searched, this is the only place that feels like home."

"You can come back here, if you wish; I'm sure that they won't stop you. But for now you need to return and find out who you really are, before the girl you searched so hard and long for dies of grief. You belong with her, Ro. I have a feeling that you have been what keeps her alive---" there were screams from outside; and they knew immediately what was wrong.

"Wraith, stay here," Ronon said, rushing out the door. Bena stopped him only briefly.

"Good luck," she whispered, before letting him bolt through the door. Ready to save the galaxy.

It was amazing how quickly the marketplace emptied when the wraith came. Ronon ran unhindered through the abandoned marketplace, past tables of food and weapons and whatever else had been brought to sell.

He heard what sounded like gunfire at the edge of the village. Following the sound he found Sheppard and Teyla and McKay fighting the dozens of wraith being beamed in from a few darts. And suddenly, memories of them flooded through him, so vivid and real that he stumbled back when they got too close.

There were memories of Sheppard, by his side fighting wraith; of McKay performing some impossibly difficult technological feat and saving the day (although they'd never admit that to him); and a million others. But the last one was of Teyla, being kidnapped and nearly fed upon by Michael.

By the end of his visions, he knew exactly who he was and what he had to do. He rushed forward, and leaped into their fight with both feet, praying that he would live to return to his life.

Within a few minutes, the wraith were gone. Those that Ronon had not taken care of had quickly fled to the gate. Ronon relaxed a little, the light of battle leaving his eyes, and everyone realized that he was completely unhurt.

"Hey buddy," Sheppard was surprised. "I thought you were stayin'."

"And let you take all the credit for this?" he was back!

"And you, um, remember everything again," McKay stammered awkwardly. "Right?"

"Yeah. Stuff started coming back when I saw you guys fighting." Sheppard laughed, and patted his shoulder.

"Good to have you back, buddy."

Bena came out from where she had been watching, her eyes glowing with pride but also with curiosity.

"So who are you really?" she asked.

"Ronon Dex. Best friend to these three and the one who gets them out of trouble."

"You say that as if we're always getting into trouble," Sheppard teased.

"Somehow I do not find that hard to believe," Bena laughed. Then she turned back to Ronon.

"You know what you need to," she said. "Now what do you choose?"

"Bena, you know what I have to do." she nodded. She wouldn't have wanted him to choose any differnet.

"Hey, maybe you can come back with us," McKay suggested. John argued with him good-naturedly about Elizabeth's rules. But right now he was so relieved that Ronon was okay and himself again that he hardly even cared.

Teyla stood on the outskirts of their celebration, confused. This was what she had wanted, what she had wished hopelessly for for three months. So why was she still miserable even though he was alive and well and back?

She realized that her distancing herself had finally taken its toll. She had spent so long running from things that she was no longer part of them. But she knew that she had brought the loneliness upon herself.

Ronon separated himself from Sheppard and McKay and Bena, who were still arguing pleasantly about if Bena could ever come to Atlantis. He went over to Teyla, and suddenly picked her up and spun her around as if she were a child. She was surprised by his gesture and for a second a little nervous. But he set her back down as gentle as ever, and words began to pour from her throat uncontrollably. "Ronon, I am so sorry fot what happened, this is all my fault. I never meant for you to get hurt; I never meant for any of this to happen. I am so sorry..." he took her face in his hands as her words faltered.

"Teyla, it's all right, I forgive you. And I'm sorry that I hurt you too."

"You couldn't help it. But I could."

"Teyla, nothing you can say changes anything I feel about you, ever." she smiled.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I know," he said, before he pressed his lips to hers in a kiss.

------------

Fin.

_A/N: I hope you enjoyed this; again, please review!_


End file.
